


Lena's Worst Enemies

by Mohnblume



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Lena Luthor Needs a Hug, Sickfic, germaphobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:08:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25864873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mohnblume/pseuds/Mohnblume
Summary: Lena has some weird habits, and Kara is too in love with her to care.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 18
Kudos: 583





	Lena's Worst Enemies

Kara doesn’t immediately notice that her friend fears microscopic organisms that cover most surfaces. No, most of Lena’s cleaning habits can be explained as being tidy. 

Certainly, she doesn’t suspect anything when they are first becoming friends. Sure she finds it a bit odd that the CEO refuses to shake hands after their first meeting, but she understands that the Luther must have trust issues with strangers, what with all the assassination attempts she’s surely endured in her life. 

And as they become better friends, she doesn’t think anything of the strange microwave Lena places all the food Kara brings her for their lunches before she eats it. No, Lena just likes her food hot, and of course since she’s a tech genius, she designed her own fancy personal appliance. 

But as they edge into best friend territory, Lena’s habits start to catch the blonde’s attention and she can no longer explain away the sheer number of confusing habits her friend has. She’s maybe falling in love with the raven haired beauty, and just wants her to be comfortable and happy. So these little things upset her, because it seems like quite a bit of anxiety accompanies the little quirks the other woman has. 

Kara doesn’t bring it up. Her budding feelings or her friend’s strange behavior. She simply accepts that their movie nights always take place in Lena’s sterile apartment, with her clean dishes and her special microwave. She doesn’t push Lena to attend game nights or a night out at the bar. Lena seems to appreciate her acceptance of this part of her, and although she never mentions it specifically, Kara can tell she’s grateful.

Accepting her newfound feelings is much harder, but it’s easy to push aside her romantic inclinations when she’s so busy memorizing each and every situation that causes Lena’s beautiful emerald eyes to tighten and her body go rigid. 

Eventually, she gets it down to a science. It’s over a year after they first met, and many blunders later, but Kara proudly thinks of herself as the expert in everything Lena. She’s even managed to get the raven haired woman to attend game night every week. And although Lena rarely plays the games, never eats or drinks anything, and sits far away from the other guests, Kara counts it as a success. She’s pretty sure Lena’s developed her nanotechnology to create nearly invisible gloves specifically for these gatherings, but she’s there and as relaxed as Kara’s ever seen her with other people around, so it’s still a win. 

The blonde also prides herself in being able to masterfully diffuse any public panic inducing situations Lena could ever find herself in. Now that she’s graduated from being a lowly assistant to Cat Grant to a fully fledged reporter, she’s got an excuse to attend all the fancy events that Lena can’t get out of. Her natural pep and charisma makes it easy for her to intercept anyone who goes for a handshake and steer those away who seem to be getting just a bit too friendly with the CEO. 

And yes, Lena does have bodyguards with her nearly all the time when she’s out in public due to the constant assassination attempts, but Kara likes to think of herself as part of the Keep Lena Safe Team. Even if her role focuses more on Lena’s mental well-being. 

It’s almost like her second job, her true purpose in life, to protect this beautiful and fragile woman. To help her, because Lena helps millions of people with her wealth and her inventions, and it’s really only fair that someone returns the favor. 

For a while, Kara is content. Satisfied to be Lena’s silent protector, her advocate, her knight. She makes it to nearly two years of friendship before too many glasses of wine at sister night bring on a drunken confession and subsequent breakdown. 

Kara wants more. Kara wants sleepovers after movie night, wants kisses at midnight, wants dates and romance. And she yearns to show this her feelings to the other woman, to be able to openly show her affection and dedication. The unknown twists something in her heart, and she avoids her best friend for a solid week so as not to allow her secret to gush out. Because for all the genius that Lena has in her mind, relationships are something that she has never excelled at. 

No, for something of this magnitude, Kara must have a plan and approach it slowly. 

Finally, just as they approach their third year of friendship, Kara feels sure enough to put her plan into motion. She knows that she can make Lena happy, and she’s fairly certain that the brunette returns her feelings, if the longing looks and soft eyes and flowers in her office are anything to go by. 

She has a plan. A simple plan to woo her best friend with gentleness and acceptance, starting with romantic movie nights, love letters, flowers, and sneaky dates. And okay, maybe Kara’s a bit of an overdramatic romantic, but it was a good plan when she came up with it and drunkenly spilled to Alex and Winn. 

But of course, as with all well thought out plans, fate throws it out the window.

It starts when Kara waltzes into Lena’s office for lunch, food already prepared in the special containers in one hand, flowers in the other. She’s maybe a bit more nervous than usual, considering that this is the first phase in her plan, but when she calls out to her friend, there’s no answer. 

Lena’s desk is empty, and when she turns to talk to Jess, Lena’s faithful assistant, she finds that desk empty as well. Frowning, she pulls out her phone to call her friend. The frown deepens when the call goes straight to voicemail, a rare occurrence.

On a whim, Kara dials her assistant’s number, heart quickening slightly. She lets out a sigh of relief when she hears a weary, “Hello?”

“Jess! Did I forget about one of Lena’s meetings?” she begins, already feeling silly for overreacting.

But the pause after her question brings back the doubt.

“No,” Jess replies slowly, “it’s...actually I’m really glad you called. Lena’s sick.”

Kara sucks in a breath. In their three years of friendship, the blonde can count on one hand the number of times her friend has been even slightly less than well, and nearly all of those times were alcohol related. 

“Oh,” she says, mind already whirring with a mental checklist of things she can do to help.

“Yes, and normally I wouldn’t disclose this, especially to a reporter--”

The blonde interrupts her indignantly, “Jess, I would never sell Lena out like that!”

Her protests go unheard, however, as the assistant barrels on, voice slightly tense, “but I know you two are best friends. I know you well enough to guess that you’re going through a mental list of what medicine you need to buy and which soup would be best.”

Kara nods to herself, grinning slightly at how well the other woman knows her. “Of course! I just want her to feel better.”

“You should know that Miss Luthor has more medication than a pharmacy, and that sickness greatly heightens her anxiety. I trust you’ll be sensitive?”

“Absolutely,” Kara replies seriously. It’s hardly unexpected. “I’m on my way to her apartment now. Got any tips?”

Jess sighs, and Kara feels warmth flood her heart at how protective the assistant can be. “Just be there. She could use a friend.”

…

The drive to Lena’s apartment takes 15 minutes on a normal day, but today it takes nearly 7. Kara’s probably broken a few traffic laws, and she remembers after parking her car that she can fly. Alex will have to yell at her for taking a DEO issued car later. 

She’s a little nervous, because even though she and Lena have hung out plenty of times, it’s always been scheduled beforehand. And well, she didn’t exactly tell Lena she was coming. 

Hesitating in front of her friend’s door, she’s struck with even more uncertainty. She doesn’t really know what to expect. She’s not even human, and has only had one minor illness in her whole time on Earth. Kara is probably the least experienced person when it comes to things like this, but she’s gone through her memories, trying to remember what humans did when they didn’t feel good.

Her love of romantic movies are really helping her now, because she does know exactly what to do to comfort a friend in need. 

Kara knocks on the door. When nothing happens for a few seconds, she debates knocking again, or just calling Lena. She’s still deliberating when Lena answers the door. 

Lena looks different than she’s ever seen her. The brunette is usually pale, but she’s more so than usual. She’s also flushed, which Kara knows indicates a fever. There are dark circles below her eyes, and she’s leaning against the doorframe, as if she doesn’t have the strength to stand for very long. 

“Kara? I’m afraid I’m not the best company right now,” Lena’s voice is scratchy, and Kara winces. It sounds painful.

All Kara wants to do is scoop her up and take her to bed. She tries her most comforting smile instead. “No, Lee, I just thought you could use some company right now. We could just sit on the couch and watch something. Or did you want to sleep? You probably want to sleep, I’m sorry, this was dumb.”

Lena straightens a bit at that. “No, I’m happy you’re here. I’ve been rude. Come in, come in.”

She moves aside, and Kara takes in the rarely seen space. It’s not nearly as immaculate as it normally is, but the mess seems contained to the couch and coffee table. There’s a blanket nest in the middle, surrounded by crumpled up tissues and boxes of various medicines. It’s all very normal and Kara wonders if perhaps she has overreacted. 

But then Lena suddenly pauses on her way back to the couch. Kara nearly collides into her as she sneezes three times in succession. Lena nearly doubles over with the force of them, and keeps her nose tucked into her elbow when she’s done. 

It’s adorable, in a way that only Lena can be, but she’s clearly embarrassed by the display. Not to mention, her heart rate is beginning to raise. 

“Lena?” she asks carefully, “Are you alright?”

Lena is already scurrying back to her tissues, mopping up her nose with the same grace and elegance as she does with everything. Her face betrays nothing, but her breaths come slightly quicker. 

“I’m just a bit under the weather, it’s just a cold,” she replies, her voice only slightly shaky. 

Kara decides to let it go for now, hoping that her friend can calm herself down. “Alright, what would you like to watch? What’s your sick day show?”

The CEO only shrugs, burrowing back into the blankets.

Deciding that it might be better to pick something out for them, Kara settles on something lighthearted. She goes with a romantic comedy.

They watch in silence for a while before Kara feels the urge to make conversation. 

“So what have you been up to today? No work, I hope.” It’s lame, but really, Kara is out of her element today, and Lena doesn’t seem like she’d be open for a deep discussion right now. 

“No, no work today. Just laying here, surrounded by my mess,” Lena replies, gesturing towards the disorder. 

“I could clean it a bit for you, if you’re bothered by it,” she offers, because she’d do anything if it would make Lena even a little bit happier. 

“I couldn’t ask that of you.” Kara frowns, before Lena continues on, “Besides, as soon as I am well, I will have the cleaners come to sanitize the apartment.”

Kara doesn’t know what to say to that, so she just nods and they go back to watching the show. It’s quiet, just the small sounds of Lena sniffling, and her harder than normal breaths. The sounds are actually quite soothing, and Kara feels her eyelids drooping when Lena sneezes again. 

This time, it’s a more prolonged fit, and she’s left breathless by the end, her nose buried in several tissues. Her heart rate is definitely elevated, and Kara’s about to ask if she’s okay when she sees the tears gathering in those green eyes. 

“Lena?” 

“It’s-I’m fine,” the brunette tries, but her voice catches on the last word. 

Kara moves to place a comforting hand on her back, but Lena shrinks back. 

“They’re inside of me,” she whispers, her eyes wide and pleading.

Panic begins to gather in Kara’s mind as she imagines microscopic robots or aliens invading Lena’s body. “What? What’s going on?”

“They’re inside of me,” Lena repeats, her words slurring with the speed she spills them out. “The germs. And I know it’s stupid and irrational, but normally I can pretend that my body is keeping them out, and I clean and I avoid people, but Kara right now, I can’t and they’re inside me.”

It’s an admission of what Kara has already expected, but the tearful, sniffling delivery is breaking Kara’s heart. It hits right in the squishy soft part with Lena’s name written on it. So, of course she wants to do anything to take away the pleading in those green eyes. Hugs aren’t generally something they do, but Kara is desperate. 

She wraps herself around her ailing friend, panicking more when Lena gasps, and stiffens. But then she’s coughing lightly, and returning the hug, and it’s probably Kara’s new favorite thing on the entire planet. 

“Hey, I’ve got you. I’ll protect you, Lee,” she murmurs into the brunette’s hair. 

“I know it’s stupid. I know they’re everywhere, but…” Lena whispers into Kara’s chest, trailing off.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to explain. Sometimes fears are irrational. I won’t think any less of you,” Kara says resolutely. It’s important that the other woman knows this. “You know that, right?”

Lena nods, then stiffens. For a harrowing second, Kara thinks she’s about to pull away and close herself off, but huffs in relief when all she does is sneeze. 

But Lena must misinterpret her action, because then she really does pull away and curl into herself. “I’m so sorry. That was disgusting. I am disgusting. I’m so sorry.”

“No of course not! I don’t care about your germs, I just care about you,” Kara replies fervently. Then pauses. Humans care about that sort of thing, don’t they? Maybe not usually to the extent that Lena does, but she might be blowing her cover here. She quickly adds, “I mean, I don’t want to get sick, obviously, but I’ll take that risk because I really care about you, Lena. Why don’t we settle back on the couch and you can rest?”

Lena looks at her for a very long time. So long, actually, that it can be considered staring. And Kara gets why it’s rude now, because it’s extremely uncomfortable. She’s not sure what’s going through her genius friend’s mind, but finally, Lena turns and nods, shifting back on the couch where she was before. Kara follows suit and curls up in the corner, next to Lena.

As Lena pulls the blankets back around her and settles in, she replies softly, “I thought Kryptonians couldn’t catch Earth diseases.”

And oh. Oh shoot. Alex is going to kill her. And J’onn. And probably Pam from HR because those NDAs must take a lot of time to make. 

Kara’s eyes are wide, and she’s not saying anything as she looks back at Lena. Staring. Which is starting to freak Lena out, who is already in her most high anxiety state. 

So, she quickly dials down her reaction. There will be time to talk about this when Lena is not anxious and upset. Resolving to brush this over until later, she replies without thinking. “Oh, right. Yeah, of course. I forgot. Sneeze on me all you want, no worries here!”

“Okay.” Lena giggles. It’s adorable really, and then she lifts her head up to look Kara in the eyes and says in the smallest, most precious voice, “What about cuddles?”

Kara’s heart melts. It’s rare to be able to see this vulnerable side of Lena, and she wants nothing more to kiss her on the forehead and spoon her right here on the couch. 

So, of course she says, “You can have all the kisses and cuddles you want.”

Then she freezes, because _really Kara?_

But Lena just sighs happily, and looks like Kara has just handed her all the answers to the universe. She shifts slightly closer, plants a soft kiss on Kara’s lips, and rearranges herself to settle in Kara’s lap. “You make everything better, Kara.”

Kara adds the kiss to the growing list of things to discuss with Lena once she’s feeling better, Then she turns on the TV, runs her hands through Lena’s soft hair, and passes her tissues through the evening. 

And when she orders soup from Noonan’s, Lena tells her the fancy microwave is actually something she invented to sterilize her food. She gets another kiss for being so understanding. 

It’s probably one of the best evenings of her whole life, and when Lena falls asleep in Kara’s arms on the couch that night and she carries her to bed, she’s sure the next morning will be just as perfect.


End file.
